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Gill v. Office of Personnel Management

Gill v. Office of Personnel Management (1st Cir. 2011): EJS joined 30 bar associations, public interest organizations, and legal services organizations to sign on to an amicus brief in the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in support of Appellees, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and same-sex couples in MA. The brief’s primary argument was that classifications based on sexual orientation must be subject to heightened scrutiny. Amici argued that courts since Lawrence v. Texas have erroneously failed to apply heightened scrutiny to sexual orientation classification. Whether a group has suffered a history of invidious discrimination, and whether the classification has any bearing on a person’s ability to perform in or contribute to society, are central factors to whether a classification should be subject to heightened scrutiny. Amici asserted that because sexual orientation easily satisfies these two critical factors, the court should hold that sexual orientation is subject to heightened scrutiny, and in applying that level of review, DOMA must be invalidated as unconstitutional.